Fixture News | 26th September 2005

Team's in place for one-day success

We confirmed our place in totesport League Division One with a
convincing win over Hampshire Hawks and the Director of Cricket claims
he will use the performance as a benchmark for next year.

He said: ?Batting has been the problem for us in one-day cricket but when we fulfil our roles we are as good as anybody.

?In our innings we had the platform set by Anurag Singh and Stephen
Fleming, David Hussey pushed the game away from Hampshire in the middle
before Chris Read and Mark Ealham came in and hit quick runs.

?That?s the formula we?ve been trying to work to all season because our
bowling has been good and our fielding has improved massively.

?That was the case again at the Rose Bowl because Ryan Sidebottom and
AJ Harris had them 23-3 with their best three batsmen out. I think we
would have won even more convincingly if the rain hadn?t come down.?

After solid batting from Singh and Fleming, who put on 97 for the
second wicket, Hussey increased the tempo with 75 off 53 balls, with
five sixes and six fours, before Read and Ealham finished the innings
with quick runs.

Sidebottom and Harris had the home side in big trouble before a heavy
shower left Hampshire chasing 10 runs an over, a task which proved
impossible.

It gave us fifth place in the final table and Newell believes the side can go on to better things next year.

He added: ?We came good in the end and I think since we beat
Gloucestershire at Cheltenham College in early August we have played
well.

?Next season I will be looking closely at the make-up of the team and I
think that this side, with the addition of a couple of others from the
squad, is the strongest we have available.?